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Our front yard is skinny, long, and flat. It’s mostly without impediments, so mowing with a walk-behind gives me the impression I am getting lots of exercise without wearing myself to a frazzle.

I didn’t realize until I’d gone a dozen laps or so that my mind had been a jumble of thoughts. Pushing the mower, watching the yard shape up, I could concentrate on one thought, examine it from a few angles, then decide what to do with it… kick it to the curb, incorporate it into my life, save any decision for later… And I still had something to show for my time.

Mowing is like that. I got visible results every step. I started with a disorganized mixture of grass and weed; and ended up with a neat, even swath of yard. And I had some time to think one thought at a time.

It wasn’t as fine as eating ice cream, but it was a pretty good way to pass an hour or two on a beautiful spring day in Georgia USA.

Our friend, Bruce Preston Farris, died earlier in May. This past Saturday, we walked over to the Sugar Creek Fire Department Station 11 to his memorial service. It was standing room only.

Bruce Farris served in the Korean War. After he & the family moved to Georgia, he became a VP at the Roswell Bank. Retirement and another move in the early ’90’s brought him to the country where he served as the President of the local Fire Association. He was a reliable friend to many of us.

Bruce was a solid citizen – dependable, a man of his word, someone you could trust. If he said it, it was so.

During the service, attendees stood to tell stories about him. One indicated Bruce may have pinched a penny or two; another told about a brush fire Bruce accidentally started. And the brother-in-law said that all three of the Farris siblings were stubborn. Stubborn. STUBBORN. But everyone agreed he was an excellent friend to have.

The brother-in-law said it best.”He was always there… Always there. I wish he were here now.”

I have my own stash of sage from last March when I sampled some of Barbara Napier‘s whipped cream biscuits and sage gravy at a cooking demo at the Arts Council’s Kentucky Crafted: The Market, but what with life and a hard 2012, I didn’t do much with it. I made one or two pans of the sublime vegetarian sage gravy, but mostly had too much cluttering up my memory to incorporate it – or anything new – into my menus.

Sage Ice Cream on Butternut Squash Cobbler

Sunday night, in Avondale at the 100 Mile Dinner, however, sage came up again in Layne Lee‘s Butternut Squash Cobbler with Sage Ice Cream. I’d been really curious since reading the menu about how sage ice cream would taste. One word – OMG! It was creamy and mild, a perfect accompaniment to the Butternut Squash Cobbler. Layne Lee’s Sweet N Sinful Bakery staff outdid themselves. FIve Stars.

Monday on the way home from Avondale – we spend the night because each course of the 100 Mile Dinners is paired with spirits – we stopped in at the DeKalb Farmers Market. Bill Ronay found some Derby Sage cheese. Sampling it at supper, I vowed to pay more attention to sage. Awesome herb. Glad it is back in my life!

Maria sold doughnuts and other pastries at farmers markets, but yearned to have a storefront, and to open a brick & mortar shop. Early this year, she & her family took that huge leap of faith and rented retail space.

In no time, her savings was invested in the build-out. They were so close they could taste the doughnuts coming out of the kitchen. So she came up with a plan to raise money on Kickstarter.com, and attracted 333 backers for a total of $12,271!

Revolution Doughnuts officially opened its doors on National Doughnut Day, June 1, 2012. My tongue hung out farther and farther as I read reviews. But I seemed to be in Decatur only on Mondays. And, bless their hearts because I KNOW they need some time to rest, these folks are closed on Mondays.

Yesterday was the day. We tooled up & down College Avenue, so desperate we even asked the Grouchy Lady (my phone’s GPS guru), finally pulling into a parking spot in front of nirvana at 908 W College Ave.

We waited patiently in a line nearly out the door (3pm on Saturday), trying to decide between the bacon caramel, the peppermint white chocolate, the toasted almond, the gingerbread… we saw stars twinkling from their lush toppings we were so happy to be there

There is no wrong choice here. If you are in or near Avondale Estates or Decatur and have not been to Revolution Doughnuts, you haven’t got an excuse. People come from North Georgia and Middle Georgia just to see if the place lives up to the hype. Walk or ride your bicycle to the shop immediately. It’s everything you’ve heard and more!

They call the group of stores next to the Thankful Baptist Church the Homer Simpson Plaza because they sell pizza, beer and doughnuts. And you can get your hair done, too.

One of the angels that popped into my 2012 was Victor, an older neighbor of my mother’s. Victor has a San Francisco Giants tattoo on the calf of each leg.

He rescued me during the playoffs. I should have known better than to visit his partner during one of the games. But I didn’t. Victor was patient during the first 15 or 20 minutes we were talking, but he just couldn’t stand not having her with him as he watched the game. It took two or three “Come on over here, THE GAME STARTED!” to register.

This morning, on the radio, General Steve Jones, a regular Friday caller, told the show host that he’d received a limited edition Chipper Jones bat for Christmas. This precious 70+ year old caller sounded as excited today as he must have been when he opened the present.

Steve’s bat is #176 out of 5000. When his sons ordered theirs, they got #998 and #999. He went on to say he was going to make a presentation case so that he can hang his prized possession on his back porch. He offered to bring the bat out to a remote the station is doing tomorrow so that everyone can see it.

The point? Victor and Steve are obsessed – consumed, captivated, engrossed, immersed in – with something they love. What are you obsessed with? What would you tattoo on your calf or drive miles to show off to your friends and total strangers?

If you aren’t obsessed, find something that stirs your soul so much you can hardly contain yourself.

For anyone who loves ice cream samples and tours, High Road Craft Ice Cream & Sorbet any Saturday from 10am to 4pm is a treat! The Atlanta-based company produces artisan ice creams, gelato, and sorbets, collaborating with sustainable, responsible partners from chefs at 115 area restaurants to Jittery Joe’s, the Athens-based coffee micro-roasters.

High Road hit the market at full trot and has been running ever since. Their recipes are often developed as pairings to chef’s recipes, or as a “I-wonder-what” wild combination of flavors one of them dreams up. The pace is brutal. 60 hour weeks are not uncommon. But, it IS ice cream! And who could complain making ICE CREAM????

The grouchy lady (my phone’s Navigation voice) will get you to the set of buildings, but High Road is on the row behind the buildings at the road. It’s fairly easy to find once you know that.

Jennifer greeted us as we walked in last Saturday. Lorenz was finishing up a tour, so I tasted some Amaretto Cherry Chocolate Chunk while we waited. Bill Ronay hadn’t tasted the Brown Butter Praline Ice Cream that won the 2012 Flavor of Georgia Food Products Contest, so he had a taste of the varietal of that they were offering.

A group walked in about two minutes before Lorenz came in, so Jennifer hit the freezer for more flavors. Limoncello Sorbet was tart and sweet, a lot like the Limoncello I’ve been making at home with a King & Prince Beach & Golf Resort recipe.

We all hairnetted-up and stepped back into the production area. There are a lot of rules a food producer must follow. Age-ing tanks and vat pasteurizers have to be separate from the other machines & processes.

High Road makes all its caramels, roasts all its nuts, hand squeezes all its lemons & limes, and grinds all its peanut butter. All of the add-ins are carefully created.

They produce product by the pint, by the gelato pan, and in three gallon buckets for their stores and clients. And, since it is illegal to sell hand-packed pints commercially, they have a packing line that pours 10 pints per minute.

All the ice cream, sorbet and gelato – when it is packaged – goes into a freezer that cools it harder than a rock (-30 degrees) in 30 minutes to an hour. As Lorenz says, “We make ice cream, not soup!”

The final step in the process is delivery. Decked out in a top hat and cool clothes, the delivery man makes a hit with hotel chefs and grocery store inventory personnel.

The people who work at High Road Craft Ice Cream and Sorbet are passionate about what they do and love telling their story.

You can buy pints after the tour at the packing house, online, and at high-end retailers and restaurants throughout the Southeast and Southwest.

Two Rhinehart’s Oyster Bars are in Augusta, but whichever one is closest is the best choice. One is in Evans, and one is close to downtown. Both serve fresh, well-prepared seafood, pub food, and sandwiches.

Nobody would wonder if they were owned by the same people. They look like beach restaurants attacked by graffiti artists. “People won’t get nervous if your restaurant looks like a broken down beach shack” is one of their sayings. Nope, we couldn’t find any!

“Beyond Casual” is their theme. Great food is what you get!

This isn’t exactly what I had, but spicy shrimp like the ones in this picture were a part of our $21.21 Friday Date Night Special. For that price, we got two meals. Mine was spicy boiled shrimp and Bill Ronay’s was medium chicken wings. Paired with awesome french fries, home baked bread, chunky cole slaw, and washed down with Yuenglings, our meals couldn’t have been better on any beach, anywhere.

The Yuenglings were part of the $2.10 Friday beer special. Coors Light is the other choice. They have specials every day. And if you are a Facebook friend who gets their emails, there are a host of extremely well priced late evening specials.

I have no clue where they source their shrimp, but they are big, juicy, flavorful and THE BEST I’ve had in I can’t remember when. I saw a bunch of fried shrimp meals around me. So if peel and eat doesn’t suit you, the fried shrimp is probably a good alternative. Or oysters… raw or fried.

“Ice cold beer make the world a friendlier place” is some more of their homegrown wisdom. Sure enough, you’ll find yourself in conversation with folks over at the next picnic table. People come from all over to chow down at Rhinehart’s.

Catfish, crab legs, fish sandwiches, and an array of beef choices are all good.

Anytime you are hungry in Augusta Georgia, fill up at Rhinehart’s. You’ll be plotting a return trip. Guaranteed.